VanEck’s head of digital asset research, Matthew Sigel, stated Bitcoin miners are “sitting on a gold mine” as they pivot infrastructure to meet AI compute demand. He argued miners are monetizing assets by shifting capacity and providing grid-balancing services, while trading at a discount to data-center peers. Sigel noted Bitcoin remains rangebound between $59,000 and $72,000, with long-term holder selling pressure easing.
Matthew Sigel, head of digital asset research at VanEck, argued Bitcoin miners are uniquely positioned to benefit from a global scramble for electricity and computing power. He stated on CNBC’s Squawk Box that miners have been “aggressively diversifying” their Bitcoin capacity to serve the AI market.
Sigel said miners were early to identify a monetization opportunity by pivoting their existing infrastructure. “These miners were early to identify that they were sitting on a gold mine in terms of the cost of capital that they can earn by pivoting,” he said.
He noted Bitcoin mining firms still trade at a significant discount to other data center peers on a market-cap-to-megawatt basis. Sigel also framed their role as increasingly relevant to grid management because they can curtail power usage during peak demand.
“It’s a really useful load balancing tool,” he said, pointing to increased grid demand from reshoring, AI, and defense applications. He explained that Bitcoin miners can turn off when electricity is critically needed, acting as a flexible load.
The analyst’s comments follow several high-profile industry pivots toward AI compute. Marathon Digital Holdings (MARA) struck a deal to convert mining sites into hyperscale data center campuses in February.
Furthermore, Core Scientific recently secured up to $1 billion in financing from Morgan Stanley to fund its pivot towards AI infrastructure. This trend highlights the sector’s strategic shift beyond pure cryptocurrency mining.
Regarding Bitcoin’s price outlook, Sigel framed its macro setup as increasingly tied to broader risk assets and liquidity conditions. He argued that oil shocks and geopolitical stress could tighten global liquidity and pressure crypto markets.
He currently sees Bitcoin in a “trading range” between $59,000 and $72,000. Sigel added that selling from longer-term holders appears to have eased over the past month, which he argued is “giving more stability.”
On prediction market Myriad, users are evenly split on Bitcoin’s near-term direction, placing a 50% chance on its next move reaching $84,000 rather than falling to $55,000. Bitcoin is currently trading around $70,120, showing a slight daily increase.
